(Newser)
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United Nations aid is making the Syrian civil war a very profitable enterprise for cronies of President Bashar al-Assad, according to a Guardian investigation. The aid—tens of millions of dollars of it, in some cases—has been awarded to hundreds of businesses closely linked to the regime, some of which are under US or European Union sanctions. Government departments, including the military-controlled national blood bank, have also received aid, as has a charity controlled by Assad's wife, Asma al-Assad. The UN says it has saved many lives and often has little choice but to cooperate with the regime. It points to the $9 million it has spent at the Four Seasons in Damascus, which is one-third owned by a government ministry—and is the safest place in the city for its workers to stay.

Critics, however, say the UN has become far too close to the regime and its support of the Assad-controlled relief effort may be actually prolonging the war, notes a separate piece in the Guardian. "In the name of delivering aid to some needy people in opposition-held areas, the UN is subsidizing the Syrian government’s war-crimes strategy of targeting those same people," says Kenneth Roth, executive director of Human Rights Watch. "That's hardly the tough-minded pragmatism that the UN claims is informing its aid efforts." Roth is among those calling for an independent review of the UN's Syria aid program, which has so far spent around $4 billion in the country; many want Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to intervene personally. (The 10,000th Syrian refugee arrives in the US this week.)

I honestly don't know what the UN could do other than what it's been doing. There are a lot of ugly facts that seem to me to force their hand here. First, slaughtering and starving civilians in huge numbers is perfectly sound, even brilliant, military strategy on Assad's part. He will only stop doing it if the cost/benefit ratio of that is better for him personally than continued slaughter. Second, once Assad gives up power, he and his buddies are going to the Hague to spend the rest of their lives in prison. This gives organizations like the UN zero leverage in threatening any punishment towards him, since he knows that he will get maximum punishment once he gives up power, and zero so long as he holds on. The only way to motivate him to not slaughter people is through rewards, since there's nothing that can be done to punish him unless we're willing to invade the country ourselves. That's not going to happen, and Assad knows it. Third, bad as Assad is, the alternatives (other than the Kurds in the far north) are worse. No matter what else happens, the war will grind on for years, and hundreds of thousands more people will die. A recent NYT article gives a good summary: http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/27/world/middleeast/syria-civil-war-why-get-worse.html . As with so much about Syria, the UN is faced with bad choices and worse choices. Maybe they could play their hand a little better, but basically they can either help Assad or stand by while thousands of civilians die.

tpvero

Aug 31, 2016 12:38 PM CDT

When does Assad get his Qaddafi? It is taking too long.

????

Aug 31, 2016 11:44 AM CDT

Oh yeah ... I believe this load of bs as much as use of WMDs. Washington terrorists are getting desperate. Kremlin refused to allow them to bomb Alippo.